


Widdle Wouds: Wesolution

by Worlds_First_Ghost



Series: Widdle Wouds [3]
Category: The Loud House (Cartoon)
Genre: Blood, Bodily Fluids, Cannibalism, Child Abuse, Child Neglect, Diapers, Family, Gen, Infantilism, Non-Sexual Age Play, Psychological Horror, Scat, Violence, Vomiting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-09
Updated: 2017-11-10
Packaged: 2018-10-16 23:25:07
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 18,261
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10581654
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Worlds_First_Ghost/pseuds/Worlds_First_Ghost
Summary: What final surprise will Lori and Lisa find in Luna's old bedroom?





	1. Thievery

Patches of ice crumbled and melted under Lisa’s fingertips as she opened the cooler. Lori didn’t want to believe it when Lisa told her that Lily’s arm had been stolen. She couldn’t accept that the sole visceral reminder of their baby sister’s existence was gone. But as she peered into the container, she saw a barren interior with only a frozen splotch of darkened blood acting as a reminder of the box’s previous contents. Small clouds of breath slipped past her mouth, chilled thanks to the vapors billowing from the empty box, and something within in her subconscious cringed at the sight. With yet another piece of evidence confirming the reality she once knew now taken from her, who could say how long it would be before her crumbling sanity soon followed? The unexpected crack of the ice box’s lid slamming shut disrupted these thoughts and caused Lori’s entire body to lurch backwards in surprise. Slightly shaken, she looked down at Lisa, who had been staring expectantly at her older sister for quite some time.

“Now that I have successfully captured your attention, dear sister,” Lisa said while her tiny fingers drummed atop the ice box’s lid, “shall we begin searching for our perpetrator?”

Lori scratched the back of her neck while she mulled over Lisa’s words. “How? I mean, it could literally be anyone, right? How do we narrow this down?”

“We can start by eliminating the glaringly improbable suspects. I highly doubt, for example, that Leni is the thief since she was fast asleep when I came to alert you.”

“That’s a relief,” Lori said, a tinge of nervous laughter in her voice. It was hard enough to deal with both Lincoln and Luna, but the possibility of Leni, the sister Lori had known the longest of all, becoming infected was not one she was willing to even consider.

“Now,” Lisa resumed, “let us commence in finding any leads to further our investigation. Perhaps the best place to start is by deducing how they were able to find it in the first place. I am certain I had taken all necessary precautions in keeping it hidden…”

Lori nodded, sharing her sister’s confusion. Ever since the first time Lisa had shown her the arm, Lisa had kept its existence entirely under wraps. In fact, Lori could count the number of instances when she actually saw it again after that on one hand. On those occasions, she had to practically beg Lisa to dredge up the cooler from the cluttered depths of her drawers just so she could see its morbid contents one more time. It made Lori felt a little guilty since Lisa always seemed extremely reluctant whenever she did so, but she couldn’t help herself. The arm was a wistful relic of happier, more stable times, and brought her solace whenever life in the house weighed down on her and made her feel like she was going to explode. Despite everyone’s belief of the contrary, it was proof that there once were eleven Loud children at some point. There was also a point where none of those children were god damned teen babies, Lori ruefully noted.

Staring at her contemplative sister, Lori often wondered if Lisa saw the arm the same way she did. While the two of them shared little common interests, the arm and knowledge surrounding it served as the foundation for a bond that was closer than any other in the entire household. It was forbidden knowledge the only the two of them were aware of. The edges of Lori’s mouth curled into a small frown as she rested on that fact, and realized that it wasn’t entirely true. Although the arm was in fact unknown to all, the container it was held in was not. The memory flashed before Lori instantly, of how she betrayed Lisa’s trust and nearly compromised their kindred secret in a moment of frustration and anger.

“It’s Lynn or Luan.” Lori’s statement came out in a stale, matter-of-fact tone that betrayed the deep-seated guilt that started to rise inside of her. “They’re the only ones who saw the ice box. There’s literally no way anyone else could have known.”

Lisa gasped. “But of course! It’s so obvious, that should have been my first conclusion! How is it that those meddlesome rats have become such a metaphorical thorn in my side!?” She then proceeded to stomp around the room all while muttering lengthy strings of verbose curses against Luan and Lynn. Lori smiled in spite of herself due to the sight of this tiny four-year-old’s body bursting with vitriol and excitement. It also helped that she appeared to be oblivious to the fact that it was ultimately Lori’s fault that the two of them found the cooler in the first place.

“Sooo…” Lori began, dragging the syllable out in hopes of distracting Lisa from her ranting, “should we go and search their rooms then?”

Lisa swiveled her head to face Lori and nodded excitedly, a menacing scowl carved across her face. “Indeed! Let us move now, and pray that the situation is not yet out of our control!”

The door hardly made a noise as it was painstakingly pushed open as slow as Lori could manage. The opening only ended up being just wide enough for both Lori and Lisa to slide their bodies through. They moved almost noiselessly down the hallway to Lynn and Lucy’s room, mostly thanks to the fact that neither of them were wearing shoes; Lori had neglected to put any on after getting out of bed and Lisa made a point to leave hers behind in the room. With her shoulder pressed against the wall, Lori reached over and pushed Lynn and Lucy’s door open. Even though both sisters struggled to see a thing amidst the darkness, they both clearly heard two pairs of loud, croaking gargles from within the depths of the bedroom. Lori immediately recognized it as the girls’ snoring, and Lisa took it as a signal to sneak inside the room undetected. Lori felt hot droplets of sweat bud against her forehead as the seconds that Lisa spent inside dragged on with no end in sight. It was only after Lisa exited the room that Lori could breathe easily, and she wasted no time in shutting the door behind her.

“I searched what I could in there,” Lisa said, holding her empty hands outwards. “I doubt that Lynn has the arm.”

Lori nodded in understanding and the two of them resumed slinking down the remaining length of the hallway to Luan’s room. Dull, orange light filtered from the underside of the door, which caused Lori to root herself in place. Lisa’s stride was unbroken, so Lori placed a hand on her shoulder to get her attention.

“Wait a second,” Lori whispered through her teeth. “You don’t think Luan might be awake in there, do you?”

“Let us hope so,” Lisa said as she shrugged Lori’s hand off her shoulder. “I for one relish in the possibility of a confrontation with that reprehensible coward.”

Lisa jumped up to grab the doorknob and pushed the door open. The room was entirely bathed in a dim, amber glow from several fake candles. The candles were arranged in a row in front of Luan, who sat in her high-back swivel chair that was faced towards the door. She grinned toothily at Lori and Lisa once they stepped inside, proudly showing off the fruits of the dental surgeons’ labors. The top row of teeth was completely free of braces and was almost perfectly parallel to the bottom row. Seeing Luan without that huge overbite that she wore for her whole childhood felt strangely off-putting to Lori, but she soon forgot about that once she noticed the object in Luan’s hands. Lori’s breath clumped in her throat as she watched Luan lift Lily’s arm into clear view, swaying flaccidly in her grip as she moved it side to side in an imitation of waving. The harsh lighting of the candles revealed the splotches of decayed skin that formed a mottled patchwork across the flesh, reaffirming that this was indeed the real arm rather than a plastic forgery.

“Hey guys,” Luan said, her grin widening as the arm swung limply in her grip. Speckles of lingering ice crystals flaked off of its flesh, glinting faintly in the candlelight. “Like what I just found? I don’t know what happened to this person, but it sure looks like it was pretty ‘armful! Hahahaha! Get it?”

“Thief!” Lisa spat. “Relinquish that appendage at once!”

“Uh oh, looks like you caught me red-handed! Don’t get close though, Lisa, I’m visibly armed!” Luan’s nasally laughter filled the room and nearly caused Lisa to lunge at her before Lori grabbed her by the shirt collar just in time. The situation was already bad enough without letting it escalate into violence.

“Enough with the jokes, Luan,” Lori said all while trying to keep Lisa’s thrashing body under control. “That belongs to Lisa, so just give it back to her and we can literally pretend none of this happened, okay?” A dismissive grunt came from the wriggling child in her hands, apparently in disagreement with this attempt at compromise.

Luan shook her head as she straightened out the hand’s index finger, keeping all the rest curled towards its palm. She then waved the arm again, making it seem as if it were wagging its finger admonishingly. “No can do, sis,” she said, “not until you tell me why you guys want to keep this a secret so badly.”

“That information is none of your concern!” Lisa shouted, still uselessly wrestling against Lori’s hold on her. Lori’s grip remained firm, but she couldn’t help but feel shamefully intrigued by Luan’s request. The idea that the arm should be shown to the rest of the family had been suggested by her several times, only for Lisa to consistently reject it. There was always an excuse, often under the vague promises of research, but it was never enough to satisfy Lori’s curiosity. Of all the secrets they were able to share with each other, Lisa insisted on keeping that bit of information firmly in the shadows.

Luan rolled her eyes. “Oh come on, Lisa. Humor a comedian, won’t you? There has to be a good reason why you don’t want me or anyone else to know about this.”

Before Lisa could cry out another indignant exclamation, Lori took the opportunity to speak up: “I mean, she has a point, Lisa.” The words made Lisa go limp in her hands. The younger girl turned around, confusion and apparent betrayal visible in her eyes. Lori spoke again, keeping her voice stern and level, “you can’t keep me in the dark about this forever.”

Lisa stared wide-eyed at Lori for a few moments before a drawn-out sigh slithered past her lips. “It wasn’t my intention to deceive you, Lori, but you must understand that this situation goes against all notions of logic and science. All of my actions had to be careful, guarded, lest I inadvertently bring about unforeseen disaster upon our relations. If Lily as an individual does not even register as a concept to these people, who knows how they would react if they were made aware of the arm’s existence? Keeping it a secret was the only way to avoid untold damage being wrought upon their weak, impressionable psyches.”

It was only through the minute details in Lisa’s expression that Lori could see through the cracks of her otherwise stoic mask. Inklings of a frown tugged at the edges of her lips and her eyes often sunk downward for brief moments before realigning themselves back to Lori. Lori softly nibbled on her lower lip once Lisa had finished, still pondering if things like that were enough to gauge whether or not her words were truly sincere. A sharp, squawking guffaw shattered her concentration and the two of them turned back to Luan, who was using the arm’s hand to wipe imaginary tears from her eye.

“Nice joke, sis,” Luan said with a sneer. She waved the arm mockingly at Lisa, which flopped about as she spoke. “You really think that this thing has that sort of effect on people? Sorry to disprove your precious science, but I’m not gonna give you a hand for that theory! Hahahaha! Get it?”

Luan continued to wave the limb wildly, putting its ineffectiveness on full display. Lisa gazed at it despondently, her previous fury having been extinguished after her confession. The arm’s movements became less violent as Luan slacked in her motions, and Lori became keenly aware of the shift in Luan’s expression. Her sneering eyes were directed away from Lisa and focused more of the arm, and her mocking grin softened until it finally transformed into a pensive frown. Her gaze soon was completely oblivious to all else in the room as she became fully engrossed in the limb in her hands. Small dribbles of saliva leaked through the edges of her closed mouth and the tip of her tongue soon poked out to lick her lips. By the time Lori could piece together what was going on, Luan had already clamped her mouth down onto the arm, her teeth easily cleaving through the decayed flesh and soft tissue.

Lori screamed and charged forward, crashing into Luan and sending the arm flying out of her jaws. The arm soared across the room before flopping onto the floor with a wet, heavy smack. Tattered skin and oozing fluids marked where Luan had torn out her chunk of meat, which she continued to chew on like a cow with its cud. Lori immediately hooked her fingers under Luan’s lips and fought to wrench her mouth open, but it was all in vain. A bulge soon formed in Luan’s throat, which languidly slithered along her neck as she swallowed. The younger girl’s face immediately grew pale. Her eyes shimmered in their sockets with pinprick pupils directed at nothing. Her jaw slacked to the right, slightly open and exposing teeth flecked with bits of darkened meat. Lori cupped the sides of her sister’s face with her hands, horror gripping her from behind as she realized that she was witnessing the transformation taking place. After a few seconds of total stillness, a sharp convulsion rocked Luan’s body from top to bottom. With dilated pupils, her eyes rolled about deliriously before finally settling on Lori. Her agape jaw softened into a warm, slightly dazed smile as a low groan rumbled inside her throat.

“Gggh… me huwt. Baby get big ouchies.”

Lori screamed again, this time in fear rather than anger. Her hands shot off of Luan before she hurled herself towards the doorway. Curled up in a shivering ball, it didn’t even occur to her that she was essentially hiding behind Lisa, who had been observing the events with awe. Luan lifted herself into a sitting position, grinning obliviously at her sisters before a grimace screwed her expression. A strained grunt rose from her chest as she leaned forward, all the muscles in her body flexing at once. Only a few seconds passed until her body immediately relaxed and she breathed out a sigh of relief.

“Oopsie,” Luan giggled, a cheeky grin returning to her face while she bounced up and down. “Baby not weawing a diapie!”

The stink was immediate. Lori gagged, desperately wishing to spew up vomit that wasn’t there. Plugging her nose to shield herself from the stench of old fish and curry, she stared at Lisa, whose uncertain expression mirrored her own. Luan proceeded to bounce around in the filth she created inside of her panties, her signature laugh ringing in Lori’s ears as the false candlelight began to flicker and dim.


	2. Relationships

>Once “Widdle Wuan” made her appearance known to the rest of the Loud House, everybody treated it as completely normal. The last few months had given everyone plenty of experience in caring for teen babies, so her presence did little to alter their daily routines.  
>Predictably, Luna was entirely forgotten about. If anyone was forced to recall an instance involving her, they would act as if Luan had been there instead. Even the incident involving Luan’s broken teeth was somehow reworked into Luan having done it to herself: “Babies can be pretty clumsy, after all.”  
>Lori fully expected all this and found it a waste of time to continue questioning her family’s prolonged obliviousness. With the remains of Luna’s body now little more than toxic slurry fermenting in the basement, there was no use in trying to convince anyone that she had ever existed anyway.  
>But however the family decided to react to all this was the least of Lori’s worries at the moment. With Luan’s transformation from teen to baby still fresh in her mind, she had trouble focusing on much else. It didn’t make sense; the disease was supposed to die with Luna, yet she witnessed Luan succumb to its effects with her own eyes.  
>“Why did she do it, Lisa?” Lori asked, her fingers clawing at her bottom eyelids. The two of them were once again in Lisa’s room, which continued to serve as both a safe haven and base of operations. “Why’d she eat Lily’s arm? It’s not like she had a motive or anything.”  
>Lisa, her face buried amidst piles of assorted lab papers, turned to her sister with a look of disappointment. “Is it not obvious to you? Last night’s incident has essentially confirmed my working hypothesis regarding the virus’s behavior. It had been lying dormant in Luan’s system, only taking hold of her mental faculties once Luna’s body had been destroyed. It caused her to seek out the only remaining source of infected biomass left in the household: Lily’s arm.”  
>“But wait, hold on a second. How was she infected in the first place? I thought you said it only travels through body fluids or whatever.”  
>“Precisely. Try to recall the night when Luan’s teeth were knocked out. Did you not observe the urine smeared all over her face?”  
>“I mean, she was crying and all, so I literally thought it was all tears.”  
>“Fair enough. Tears are not normally dark amber in color though, so my observation stands. Assuming the urine belonged to Luna, which is the most likely outcome, it could easily have spread the disease into Luan’s body via the open orifices of her eyes.”  
>Lori stared at her sister in disbelief. “So… you’re saying that you knew Luan was infected ever since that day? And you literally didn’t even tell me!?”  
>Lisa frowned, sensing the apparent anger in Lori’s voice. “Apologies. It was not my intent to deceive you. With last night’s operation having been a success, it did not seem necessary to burden your fragile psyche with such troubling knowledge. Had I known at the time that the arm would end up becoming a liability, I certainly would have indulged you.”  
>Lori gnawed at her lower lip, unsure if she should feel hurt or not by her sister’s continued secrecy. How were they supposed to keep working together if Lisa still kept things hidden from her? Aches began to pulse through Lori’s head as she thought about what other kinds of dark secrets Lisa had scrawled down within those giant stacks of papers.  
>The vibrations of her phone distracted Lori from the subject, so she pulled it out and looked at the most recent text message from Bobby. She couldn’t remember the last time he texted her. The both of them had struggled to keep semi-regular correspondence, but the stress of taking care of all these “babies” had prevented Lori from talking with him nearly as often as she’d like.  
>In addition, what little conversations they had felt merely like going through the motions. Lori couldn’t tell him about her situation at home, he’d just think she was crazy like everyone else. But there was hardly anything else she could talk about aside from it, and she could hardly ever focus on whatever banal topic Bobby talked about for long. Despite this, the two of them still seemed willing to pretend that their relationship was stable, mostly because neither were willing to accept the alternative.  
>This message asked if he could come over, to which Lori replied no. Bobby hadn’t been to the house ever since Lincoln underwent his transformation. There was no way she’d let him anywhere near those little monsters.  
>Bobby’s response was surprisingly swift. “C’mon babe! We barely ever see each other anymore. I thought this was supposed to be you and me forever, right?”  
>Of course he’d try and guilt her; what other choice did he have? Swallowing the shame that had clumped in her throat, Lori reluctantly agreed to his request. She told Bobby to give her about ten minutes before he came over, giving her plenty of time to ensure that no foul-ups would occur during his visit.  
>Lori immediately set to work ensuring that Luan was properly changed, fed, and washed. After several clean ups involving bath water, creamed corn, and plenty of shit, Lori attempted to coax Luan into bed. Luan fought this every inch of the way, but ultimately Lori was able to restrain her with the bed sheets before running out of the room and locking the door behind her.  
>Luan’s fists instantly began thumping uselessly against the door. Lori rolled her eyes as she walked down the stairs to wait for Bobby, silently praying that Luan would tire herself out soon.  
>After several minutes, Bobby finally arrived. As soon as she saw his face, Lori threw herself towards him and embraced him tightly. The warmth of his body was therapeutic, and it felt almost physically painful for her to let him go.  
>Before Bobby could say anything, Lori hurriedly grabbed his hand and led him upstairs. It only made sense to have complete privacy; couldn’t have some nosy family member spoil the reunion. As the two of them reached her bedroom, Lori held back a sigh of relief once it registered to her that Luan was no longer making any noise.  
>Lori walked Bobby over to her bed and sat down. She stared into his confused eyes as she deliberated over the right choice of words to say.  
>“I’m so sorry we haven’t really seen each other these past few months, Boo Boo Bear,” she said. “I’ve literally got a reason for all this. I just don’t know if you’ll believe me.”  
>“Aww, of course I will, babe,” Bobby said. “You can tell me anything.”  
>Lori cupped a hand to her forehead, her fingers kneading against her skull. “It’s just that these past months have literally been a handful for me and my family. It’s because of the baby…” She trailed off, unsure of what else she could say without Bobby thinking her as some kind of lunatic.  
>Bobby nodded in understanding. “Oh yeah, I feel you, babe. Babies can be a handful. I’m sure that, uh... Her name’s L… Lily, right?”  
>Lori’s arms limply dropped from her head as it swiveled to look directly at Bobby. Her eyes felt like they were about to bulge out of their sockets. Could it be that he actually remembered?  
>Before she could say anything though, the bedroom door swung open with a thunderous crack. Luan crawled inside on all fours, her glaring eyes completely focused on Lori. “Widdle Wuan not tiwed!”  
>“Ohhh, that’s right. It was Luan! See I was close, babe.” Bobby grinned proudly, oblivious to the fact that Lori was now on the verge of bawling her eyes out.  
>“Baby no want naps!” Luan continued. Her nostrils flared and she flexed her arms out at her sides in an attempt to make herself look larger. “Baby gonna teach Lowi wesson she nevah fowget!”  
>Luan’s bottom lip curled inward while her jaws clamped around it. A deep groan reverberated within her chest, growing louder and higher in pitch as it traveled all the way to the back of her throat. She lowered herself into a low squatting position, her knees locking into place while her still flexed arms trembled under the strain.  
>A full 45 seconds passed until a warbling fart crackled against the inside of Luan’s diaper. Luan only stared blankly ahead, her eyelids peeled back as far as they could go. The breath in her nostrils froze for a few more seconds until another fart followed. The gas soon gave way to a series of rapid crinkling as the empty space within the garment was soon filled by solid, crusty waste.  
>Lori and Bobby could only watch in amazement and disgust as the young girl pushed every inch of the turd out of her shaking body. It was only after the act was over that all the muscles in her body relaxed at once and she resumed breathing, something she had neglected to do since she started shitting. Like a diver after resurfacing, she coughed and sputtered as she fought to swallow as much air as she could, hoping to soothe her screaming lungs.  
>Once Luan’s ragged breathing returned to normal, her exhausted eyes rolled up and focused on Bobby. With her jaw slacked to the side and formed in the vague semblances of a smile, she toddled over to him and threw herself onto his lap. A soggy squelch gurgled from the force of her diaper pressing down onto him.  
>Bobby reeled back from both the shock and the sharp funk of Luan’s shit stinging his nose. Before he could try to wriggle out from underneath her, Luan planted both of her hands onto his shoulders and squeezed tightly. The dull pain pooling from under her digits helped keep him still.  
>Mushy splats and plops filled the room as Luan churned her slurry against Bobby’s hips. Curdles of foamy shit began to ooze from the openings of the diaper as she leaned forward, attempting to nuzzle up to his struggling cheeks. There were a few times where she’d briefly look over her shoulder and stare at Lori while she did all this. The expression on her face read to Lori as both pleasurable and something else that she could only interpret as mocking.  
>Normally, this would be the time where Lori jumped into action and stopped all this. There would’ve no doubt been satisfaction out of rescuing her boyfriend from this degenerate and throwing her to the ground, and maybe kicking her in the ribs for good measure. It may have been simple morbid curiosity, or maybe the unnerving way that Luan kept smiling at her, but Lori found herself compelled to keep watching.  
>This was totally different to how Lincoln and Luna would act when they were infected. Luna may have been slightly more prone to aggression than Lincoln, but the both of them possessed the immature ignorance and entitlement indicative of a spoiled child.  
>This, however, was outside of any sort of “teen baby” behavior. Luan was clearly demonstrating concepts beyond the understanding of a normal infant, like vengeance and sexuality. The continued grinding of her hips against Bobby’s and the nearly whispered moans she breathed against his neck provided the soundtrack of this twisted scene, which Lori felt powerless to stop.  
>Ultimately, Bobby had only himself to rely on. With his sense of self-preservation finally kicking in, he violently twisted his body to the side. The rapid action weakened Luan’s grip on his shoulders and he was able to throw her onto the bed.  
>Tunnel vision wrapped around the door, which Bobby zoomed towards atop wobbling legs. The stairs shook under his crashing footsteps, which echoed within the empty halls even after he had ran out of the front door.  
>The shrill peal of Luan’s crying shook Lori from her stupor. Her fears came to pass, and now Bobby was gone. While her brain struggled to piece together what had just happened, she felt her skin grow clammy as questions began washing over her. Would Bobby tell anybody else of what happened here? And what’s more, would he even want speak to her again?  
>Bile festered in Lori’s stomach while blood thumped inside her head, which felt heavy and swollen. Even worse was the stinging sensation in her ears as they were subjected to Luan’s wailing.  
>With her hands cupped over her ears, Lori glared at the crying teenager. At that moment, she resolved that she wasn’t about to be subjected to this teen baby shit for a third time.  
>As soon as she could find an opportunity, she’d ensure that she would get Luan Loud out of her life for good.


	3. The Plague Spreads

>A few days had passed since Bobby’s first encounter with Widdle Wuan, yet he still wouldn’t answer any of Lori’s texts. Lori wasn’t sure what to make of his silence, but she at least felt confident that their relationship was still intact; they were still “Facebook official,” after all.  
>Still, she waited in agony for a reply from Bobby, but she was also waiting for a chance to execute her self-imposed mission. There needed to be an opportunity where Luan was all alone, where Lori could get close to her unnoticed. She just needed that one opening to kill that little monster and then, perhaps, she could feel a little more at ease for once.  
>Luckily, with three less people in the household, such opportunities were easier to come by. Mr. and Mrs. Loud were currently picking the twins up from a friend’s house, and Lynn was at one of her many sports practices. With Leni downstairs and Lucy more than likely crawling through the air vents, Lori felt confident that nobody would be able to reach Luan before she was through with her.  
>It was best to act swiftly though; one could never be too careful in this house. Not wanting to risk going against Luan unprepared, Lori set about searching her room for anything remotely resembling a weapon. Scouring under the bed and rummaging through the dressers, she struggled to find anything deadlier than a shoe or a really long scarf.  
>The prospect of simply grabbing a kitchen knife from downstairs gradually became more enticing as the search progressed, but the possibility of being spotted by Leni was still there. Lori still might have chanced it had she not noticed a hand mirror on top of her dresser.  
>It was one of several of these types of mirrors that Leni owned. The glass held within its rounded, teal-painted frame caught Lori’s attention. Broken glass probably wasn’t the ideal murder weapon, but at least it was better than the shoe. Besides, it wasn’t like Leni was going to miss it if it was gone; she had way too many of these to keep count.  
>Lori picked it up and swung it against the dresser. A large crack split through the glass as it sprung from the frame. The impact onto the floor was more than enough to shatter it into several large pieces that scattered in all directions.  
>Lori picked one up and let it rest on her palm. The shard shimmered as her warped reflection formed within it. The ghosts of future wrinkles were visible in the tiny portrait, framing the dark bags that hung limply from her eyes. Lori frowned and closed her fingers over the glass to cover it.  
>Perhaps there was some irony in the fact that her siblings acting younger was causing her face to look older, but she didn’t catch it. To her, the marks on her face were just one of many reasons why her revenge on that freak of nature will be so cathartic.  
>Lori was so absorbed in her scheming that she didn’t even hear Leni climbing up the stairs. The younger Loud was taking a break from watching TV and was about to go into Luan’s room to check on her.  
>Unlike Lincoln and Luna before her, Luan slept in her own bedroom rather than in the hallway closet. This decision was met with outcry from the Loud children, all of whom wishing for a room of their own. However, their parents were adamant about not relegating Luan to the closet: it was too small and the odor inside was just indescribably awful. It almost smelled like someone had died in there.  
>Once Leni entered the room, Luan peered over the edge of her newly furnished crib and shook the bars impatiently. “Weni! Baby need a diapie change!” she squealed.  
>Leni nodded with an understanding smile on her face. While the task itself is disgusting and time-consuming, Leni knew it was necessary. She had to take care of her baby sister, after all.  
>Leni pulled the wall of the crib down and dragged Luan out, grunting under the weight. She ambled towards the changing table and set Luan down. The rotten stench only intensified after Leni peeled open Luan’s diaper. Curled tendrils of mushy shit rested amidst thin, translucent liquid. Leni held her breath and scooped up the diaper with her trembling hands.  
>Once the waste was disposed of, Leni turned around to see Luan already making more of a mess. A fat turd inched its way out of Luan’s anus and splayed itself out onto the changing table. Like a plug removed from a drain pipe, a surge of yellow-brown fluid gushed and sputtered out of Luan’s ass. Chunks of solid matter were slowly squeezed from the orifice and collected into a small, crusty pile amidst the storm.  
>Leni backed away from the spectacle warily. She had to deal with diaper emergencies before, but this was just too much. There was no way she could clean this up on her own, so she turned on her heels to go fetch Lori from the other room.  
>She had barely taken her foot off the ground before she felt a hand clamp down on her shoulder. In a single motion, her body was jerked back at a downward angle, causing her legs to swing out and off the ground.  
>A field of white filled Leni’s vision for a brief moment after her head slammed to the floor. She could hardly even process Luan’s blurry form looming over her, nor could she identify the mushy, dripping substance held in her hand.  
>Leni moaned as Luan’s entire body weight uncomfortably pressed down onto her. Noticing the opportunity, Luan threw the hand holding the semi-solid turd out towards Leni’s open mouth.  
>It was at this moment that the bedroom door was slowly pushed open, exposing the sordid scene to Lori’s unsuspecting eyes. Her previously determined expression shattered into a gaze of horror as she saw the brown, putrid substance smeared all over Leni’s face. She had hesitated too long; the virus had claimed another victim.  
>Before she could regain herself and carry out her strike against Luan though, she noticed something unsettling in Leni’s complexion. The older girl’s pupils contracted into dots, leaving her eyes vacant and white as her increasingly pale skin. Shit leaked from her open jaws and her body spasmed so violently that it nearly knocked Luan off from on top of her.  
>Lori’s mouth dried up and trails of cold sweat slithered down her neck as she tried to place this worrying feeling of déjà vu. It was only after Leni began lifting herself off the ground and stared at her that she realized what was wrong.  
>“Wike, hi Lowi,” Leni giggled. She wore a grin stretching from ear to ear, revealing two rows of brown-stained teeth.  
>The glass shard was still clattering atop the floor by the time Lori had sprinted out of the room. Luan and Leni’s shared laughter echoed through the hall and burned her ears as she hurtled herself towards Lisa’s bedroom.


	4. Biology

>The door to Lisa’s bedroom swung open and slammed against the wall. The swift motion birthed a gust of air that swept through the room and toppled several stacks of notes, theses, and other miscellaneous papers off of Lisa’s desk.  
>Lisa gritted her teeth and swatted at a page that drifted past her eyes. She was prepared to snap at her unwanted guest before she realized who it was at the other side of the paper rain.  
>Lori leaned against the doorframe. Her forehead glistened with a film of clammy sweat and heavy panting racked her shivering body. However, her wide and alert eyes betrayed any sort of fatigue she might had been experiencing.  
>Lisa approached her sister warily. She had grown accustomed to Lori’s panic attacks ever since the outbreak, but the look in her eyes unnerved her. They were the type of eyes that looked like might they belong to war vets or witnesses to a murder. “What’s wrong, Lori?”  
>The question was only met with ragged gasps and coughs as Lori struggled to catch her breath. Once she could from actual words, though, they only spilled out in a jabbering, incomprehensible mess.  
>Lisa shook her head and led Lori to her bed before motioning her to sit down. “Please try to use your words properly. I am not in the mood to play 20 Questions.”  
>Lori’s fingers drummed frantically atop the mattress while she fought to control her breathing. Her head pulsated and ached as she still tried to process what had happened back in that room. Widdle Wuan, the shit smeared across Leni’s mouth, it all felt too surreal to have actually happened. Not to mention, it shouldn’t be possible, right? If what Lisa told her was true, Leni shouldn’t have transformed while Luan was still alive.  
>“Leni’s gone, Lisa,” Lori whispered. “I-I saw her with Luan’s… mess all over her face. I thought… I thought there could only be one of those things at a time.”  
>The color drained from Lisa’s face. Through Lori’s vague response, she was still able to piece together what had happened. After getting on her knees, she began crawling around the floor and sifted through the scattered papers all while muttering under her breath. “Oh heaven help us. I had hoped it wouldn’t come to this.”  
>“Come to what? What are you talking about?”  
>“I realize you’re still recovering from shock, dear sister, but please try to recall what I’ve told you in the past regarding the virus. As you know, it takes affect by reducing an infected individual to the mental state of an infant in order to fill that missing niche in the familial structure. Any other individuals the host may have infected will carry the virus without displaying symptoms until the death of the original host. This is to ensure that the family dynamic in which the virus was birthed in will not shatter.  
>“Of course, that dynamic has since shifted. Our numbers have dwindled from 13 to 10 in the span of less than a year. If what you said is true, that means that this virus is adapting to its surroundings. It realizes that its original environment is non-existent and that there are blanks that need to be filled. Who’s to say that they can’t be filled with more babies?”  
>Lori only gazed dumbly at her sister. With her body still affected by residual shock, it was hard to understand most of what Lisa had said. Trying to take in her words was like trying to absorb water with an already fat, soggy sponge.  
>“You said that you hoped it wouldn’t come to this. What did you mean by that?”  
>“Simply that this was a working theory that has now been proven correct. I had hoped that the virus would not show signs of being able to evolve, but I suppose that’s the nature of biology. Though I must admit, it is fascinating that the virus had evidently learned to forgo the step of having the host consume infected biomass prior to the transformation. I had initially believed that was a critical step in the process, but that no longer appears to be the case. Perhaps it was too time consuming, and its nature apparently favors creating more of these babies in the quickest possible manner. I’ll have to research more when we have time…”  
>A dull itch began to pool at the base of Lori’s head, making it feel as if her brain stem was fraying like a piece of exposed wire. The little brat knew about this all along, didn’t she? She had been planning for this exact moment and was keeping her dumb older sister in the dark like always.  
>Lisa had barely finished her next sentence before she was unexpectedly rolled over and splayed out with her back to the ground. A cry of surprise mutated into a stuttering wheeze underneath the pressure of Lori’s hand on her throat.  
>Lisa’s tiny hands uselessly wrapped around Lori’s much larger one. Lisa stared into Lori’s cold, blank eyes. A stray thought flitted about in her panicked brain: were these the eyes that Lincoln stared into during his final moments?  
>“I’m so literally sick of this, Lisa. What else about these freaks are you hiding? Tell me! You literally can’t keep lying to me forever!”  
>The hot breath of Lori’s words fogged up Lisa’s glasses, leaving her blinded and disoriented as she struggled and gasped under Lori’s hold. Although she was unable to fight Lori off, she managed to wriggle her small thumbs underneath the crushing palm. By pushing up against it, she could at least force out a few strangled words. “L-Lori please! Let… me… speak!”  
>Lori deliberated on this and stared into the child’s bulging, pleading eyes from behind the misty glasses. While still keeping her hand firmly on Lisa’s throat, she loosened her grip just enough to let her say her peace.  
>Lisa gulped down a mouthful of air as she carefully chose her words. “I understand that you feel betrayed, sister, but do believe me when I say that I am on your side. This never registered as a legitimate outcome. It was merely a worst-case scenario that I had theorized some time ago. Had I known the situation would become this disastrous, I would’ve informed you immediately. We’re all in danger now, Lori. There’s no telling how many niches the virus could fill before it determines that its family structure is stabilized. For the time being, you, I, and the rest of our family are all potentially at risk of becoming infected.”  
>After Lisa had finished, Lori’s body began to stiffen as she took the information in. As all her muscles tensed, so too did the ones in her fingers, which flexed back down onto Lisa’s throat. The smaller Loud let out a pained whimper in response, which seemed to alert Lori as to what exactly she was doing. A toddler’s neck was in her grasp, and she was poised to squeeze the life out of it.  
>Horrified, Lori let go of Lisa. Tears streamed down her face as the gravity of the situation crashed down on her all at once. Is this what she has been reduced to? Who could even stop her if one day she surrendered herself to violence and decided to add even more siblings to her body count?  
>Lori attempted to apologize to Lisa, but her words were submerged in a muddling gush of tears, spit, and mucus. Lisa observed her broken down sister in stunned silence, all while tenderly palming her aching throat.  
>Against her better judgment, Lisa stepped forward and put a hand of Lori’s shoulder. “I understand the sentiment, and I forgive you. You need not attempt to speak anymo-”  
>Lisa soon found her entire body wrapped in Lori’s arms. The hot fluids that continued to exude from Lori’s face were now being soaked up by Lisa’s sweater. This combined with the invasion of her personal space caused Lisa to cringe, but she made no attempt to break free.  
>“Now is not the time to be fighting amongst ourselves, Lori. You and I must ensure that the virus does not claim anymore of our relations. We must also be additionally vigilant, as there are now two infected individuals rather than just one.”  
>Lori nodded in acknowledgement, her face still buried in Lisa’s shoulder. The two sisters remained in this position for several minutes until the tears finally stopped flowing and Lori let Lisa go.  
>Lisa furiously rubbed the slimy stain on her sweater while walking towards the door. Opening it, she poked her head out and stared down the hallway with Lori joining her after a few moments.  
>At the far end in front of the bathroom, Leni trundled about on all fours with a big smile on her face. A cry tried to fly from Lori’s mouth, but she forced it down; she couldn’t let her trauma get the better of her.  
>“Fascinating,” Lisa whispered. She brought out a small notepad and began scribbling furiously, much to Lori’s concern.  
>Leni, oblivious to the onlookers, continued to crawl aimlessly until she turned too close against the wall and bumped her head. She then rolled over onto her back in a daze.  
>Lisa couldn’t help but snicker. “I suppose that’s a fortunate sign. Leni appears to be as slow as ever before. And here I thought that she would constitute as an actual threat.”  
>As soon as Lisa finished her sentence, Luan’s head emerged from the doorway at the end of the hall. With her eyes glued onto Lori and Lisa, she slowly brought out her hand into view. Lori winced at the large, greasy lump of shit cradled within Luan’s fingers.  
>Luan howled with laughter as she reared her arm back and launched the turd down the hall. Lori and Lisa barely had enough time to duck back into the room before it whizzed past their heads and splattered against the hall closet.  
>With Luan’s echoing laughter continuing to rumble inside the room, Lori looked nervously over at Lisa. “What sort of sign would you call that?”  
>Lisa pushed up her glasses. “A sign that I should take up wearing a HAZMAT suit until this situation is properly handled. I suggest you procure one in your size as well.”


	5. Dinner

>To no one’s surprise, the dual onslaught of both Widdle Wuan and Widdle Weni delivered an unprecedented strain onto the Loud House. Everybody found themselves sorely ill-equipped to handle the increased frequencies of crying, bath times, and especially diaper changes.  
>Lynn and Lucy were two of Luan’s favorite targets for pranks. Far from the elaborate schemes that she used to pull, these “pranks” mostly consisted of her simply planting her own messy diapers in random locations in their room. Unfortunately for Lynn and Lucy, Luan turned out to be pretty good at hiding them.  
>The twins became painfully aware of Leni’s complete disregard for personal space. All of Lola’s pageant dresses were destroyed in Leni’s attempts to squeeze into them and play dress-up, and many of Lana’s pets had grown stressed and anti-social after Leni’s repeated displays of affection in the form of tail-pulling and petting that may as well be considered slapping.  
>Rita had taken up drinking, an old habit she had kicked way back when she was pregnant with Lori. The tang of liquor often streamed out of her bedroom through the air vents, which ended up causing the whole house to smell faintly like a run-down bar.  
>Lynn Sr. had fallen into a worrisome depression. The shine had vanished from his eyes and motivation was sapped from his body. His passion for cooking had dissipated, and the family was forced to adopt a policy of “fending for themselves” when it came to mealtimes.  
>With both parents out of commission, the burden of responsibility naturally shifted to Lori. After a week of alternating between Chinese food and pizza for dinner, Lori took it upon herself to get her family to eat a home-cooked meal for once.  
>Since today happened to be Thursday and her imagination didn’t stray far from her father’s original meal plan, she decided to make goulash. It probably wouldn’t taste as good as her father’s, but at least it was a good opportunity to practice her cooking.  
>It would also help in occupying her mind from other things. Ever since Luan infected Leni, the possibility that she would be the next victim kept Lori on near-constant alert. It had gotten to the point where she found herself lying awake in bed at night. Of course, that was also partly to avoid the frequently reoccurring nightmares of Luan sneaking into her room while she slept.  
>The ground beef crackled and fizzed within the frying pan. Lori had been keeping an eye on it for so long that she didn’t even notice Lisa come into the kitchen. The squeal of a stool being dragged along the linoleum was what finally alerted her.  
>“What are you doing, Lisa?”  
>Lisa placed the stool up to the counter and next to Lori before climbing on top of it. “I’ve come to offer my assistance in preparing tonight’s feast.”  
>“That’s okay, Lisa. I think I’ve got it.” Lori’s eyes drifted back to the beef in the pan. How brown was it supposed to get again?  
>“But I insist. Father will certainly vouch for my expertise if you were to ask him. I have assisted him in the kitchen numerous times.”  
>“Wait, are you serious? Since when do you cook?”  
>“Come now, Lori. Are you really going to insist on questioning my every claim again?”  
>Lori winced. She needed to learn to stop doubting Lisa, especially over trivial matters like this. “Okay, okay. I’m sorry. Here, you can help by stirring the noodles.”  
>The two passed the time in silence while Lisa stirred and Lori diced tomatoes. The knife wavered in Lori’s shaking hand and often wouldn’t be able to cleanly cut into the tomato’s rubbery skin. It wasn’t long before the cutting board was soaked in runny juice and riddled with mushy, uneven tomato chunks.  
>Lisa glanced over at the mess. “Would you prefer if we swapped tasks?”  
>Lori set the knife down and rubbed her shoulder in embarrassment. “Y-yeah, sorry. I’m just feeling a bit edgy. Been like that for a few days, actually.”  
>“That may be partly thanks to the sleep deprivation you’re suffering from.”  
>“Well, I have been having trouble sleeping lately… how’d you know that?”  
>“Those darkened blemishes around your orbits are a dead giveaway. Would you say that you’re also experiencing anxiety or night terrors that may be contributing to your lack of sleep?”  
>Lori lightly traced a finger along her eyelid. She had hoped the concealer she had been using would be enough to hide the rings under her eyes. “That’s right, too. You know, this wouldn’t be happening if it wasn’t for Luan. This is literally all her fault! Ugh… why am I telling you this? You literally already know what I mean. She’s getting to you too, right?”  
>Lisa shrugged. “I try not to dwell on it too much. The fact of the matter is that it is no use accruing needless anxiety over something that we cannot appropriately solve at the moment. Luan and Leni must be eliminated simultaneously, and that will require a more thought out plan than sneaking into their room and murdering them in the night.”  
>Lori’s lip curled inwards to form a small grimace, but she said nothing. As usual, Lisa was the voice of reason, and Lori would just have to try her best to follow her advice.  
>The rest of the meal preparation carried on smoothly. Once the goulash was just about ready to be taken off the stove, Lisa turned to Lori and gestured towards the dining room.  
>“I’ll serve dinner tonight, so go take your seat.”  
>“No, Lisa. I cooked, so I should serve it to everyone, too.”  
>“I believe you mean we cooked it. Besides, in your current state of mind, you’d probably drop something along the way.”  
>Lori nodded unquestioningly and shuffled into the dining room. There was no point in trying to argue anymore. Everyone was already seated, but nobody looked up at Lori as she entered. Their pale, sunken faces were fixed downward while the wooden joints of two custom-built highchairs screeched all along the floor.  
>Deranged laughter rolled out from the depths of Luan’s belly as she forced her chair to hop, swivel, and sway. It looked like she might just topple over at times; a possibility Lori was banking on. She caused most of the ruckus while Leni idly rocked from side to side in her attempts to mimic her sister.  
>When Lori sat down, Leni turned to her with a slack smile hanging along her face. Her lips glimmered from the slick drool glazed all over them while more spilled out from her mouth in a frothy mess. Lori groaned and turned to look away. It seemed Leni’s degeneration worsened every day, serving as a constant reminder to Lori that she wasn’t quick enough to save her.  
>Lisa arrived shortly afterwards with dinner, rolling it up to the table on a metal trolley. Everyone’s faces began to perk up as soon as they caught scent of the goulash, as if they were rejuvenated by smelling something that wasn’t stale feces for once. Scattered murmurs of praises directed towards Lori and her cooking had barely started to circulate around the table before everyone was immediately silenced by a bout of forced, exaggerated coughing.  
>Luan cleared her throat once she had gotten everyone’s attention. She then raised herself high from her seat and made a guttural noise of disgust. “Baby no wike that dinnah. Baby want tendies!”  
>Lori scowled. There was no way she was letting this little brat spoil tonight for everyone else. “No, Luan. We already had chicken last night, remember?”  
>“Not the same! Owange chicken not tendies! It not the same!”  
>“Well, that’s literally too bad. Tonight we’re having goulash.”  
>“Gouwash poo poo! Makes me wanna thwow up!”  
>Luan slammed her fists down on her tray and glared at Lori. Lori chose not to avert her gaze, but couldn’t help but notice the muscles in Luan’s arms rippling underneath the skin. Her gut heaved with labored breaths and the front of her neck twitched with the flexing of her throat.  
>Everyone was awestruck as they watched Luan’s display and nobody dared interrupt her. Finally, Luan’s eyes rolled back as she let loose a gagging dry heave. Rearing back once more, she repeated the motion, only this time she was able to hack up a dull orange splash of vomit. Half of it fell straight into her bowl, but the rest managed to fly all the way across the table, making it look like somebody had spilled paint everywhere.  
>Lola screamed. Lucy and Lynn instinctively jumped back to avoid getting hit. Even Lana looked a little disturbed. Leni had watched the scene with widened eyes, but as soon as Luan finished, she immediately frowned and lurched forward. Small whimpers squeaked past her curled lips until she spewed forth a torrent of sick all over her end of the table. Large brown chunks settled amidst the brownish-green muck that seeped into the table cloth and dripped onto the floor.  
>Luan threw a hand over her mouth as she watched Leni vomit. That first time she puked was a result of sheer force of will, but actual nausea had settled in at this point. Like a chain reaction, Luan spat up even more sludgy bile. Still vaguely orange in color, the majority of the vomit spilled out mostly onto Luan, having lacked the force to be shot across the table this time.  
>Almost everyone had stormed out of the room at this point. Nobody was interested in seeing how much longer this would go on for. The only ones left gathered at the table aside from the two babies were Lori, Lisa, and their parents. Lisa seemed to be muttering unintelligibly about “missing zip-locs” and “samples going to waste.” The color had drained from Lori’s face, but she wasn’t too put off by the spectacle; she had already witnessed much worse than this.  
>Meanwhile, Lynn Sr. and Rita were looking at each other rather than the splatters of vomit. Scowls ripped across their jaws and their wrinkled brows seemed to fold in on each other. The two of them briefly shot a glance at the vomit-coated table before resuming their gazes.  
>“Well, honey,” Lynn Sr. said. “I don’t know about you, but I don’t think I can take much more of this anymore.”  
>Rita nodded. “We can talk about this more in the morning.”  
>In complete unison, the two stood up from the table and walked out of the room. Lori opened her mouth to say something, but she wasn’t even sure if she could properly vocalize her thoughts.  
>It didn’t matter, though. Even if she could form words, they would’ve been drowned out by the ragged dry-heaves and groans coming from her puke-stained sisters. Leni clutched her stomach and hiccupped weakly, in her attempts to call for her mom and dad.  
>Meanwhile, Luan found amusement from the tie-dye of bile she had helped create. She croaked out a few chuckles amidst her heavy breathing while turning to face Lori. “Mommy and Daddy awen’t gonna cwean dis up. Wooks wike you’we it, Lowi!”


	6. The Truth

“Dear kids, we’ll be out of the house for a few days. Listen to Lori while we’re gone. – Mom and Dad”

Lori was the first to find the note, which was unceremoniously tacked to the fridge with a letter L magnet. It read so abrupt and impersonal; there wasn’t even a “Love you” at the end. Lori placed the note back on the fridge and tried calling both her parents’ cell phones, which predictably went straight to voicemail. Searching their bedroom also yielded no results, as the only thing inside it that changed was that most of their clothes were missing from the drawers and closet. This told her nothing except that wherever they were, they were most likely planning to stay there for several days.

Lori shuffled her feet on her way back to the kitchen, thinking about how she would break the news to her sisters. It turned out that she would be spared the ordeal, as they had all already woken up and found things out by themselves. All but Lisa were clustered around the fridge and babbling amongst each other as they read the note, their distressed voices massing together into a cloud of noise as they wondered aloud where their parents were. The youngest sister, meanwhile, was seated at the kitchen table with a small tablet in her hand. As soon as Lori entered the room, Lisa motioned for her to come over, claiming that she had already solved the mystery. What both Lynn Sr. and Rita neglected to take into account were the microchips that Lisa had previously embedded into their skin for instances such as these. Lisa had since upgraded her radar-based tracking device to include GPS, which allowed her to pinpoint their exact location. Lori looked over the information on Lisa’s tablet and relayed it to everyone else. It turned out that they were currently residing at “Ted & Jay’s Motel,” a seedy two-star lodging propped along the freeway that led to downtown Detroit. Usually a haven for crack fiends and sex offenders, most of its rooms smelled like mildew and semen, and its shoddy electrical wiring made even switching on a light into a potential fire hazard. Even with all that in mind, Lori couldn’t help but envy her parents and wish that they had taken her with them. Although, maybe it was for the best that she stayed behind. Looking at the confused, tear-stained congregation in front of her, it was unthinkable to leave them at the mercy of those two wretches upstairs.

With the initial panic now mostly quashed, the girls collectively looked to Lori for further direction. Since having responsibility thrust upon her was like second nature at this point, it only took her a few minutes of thinking, in addition to a little bit of arts and crafts, to present her idea for a new system of order while Mom and Dad were away. It was a chore wheel which dictated who was in charge of washing, feeding, and caring for both Luan and Leni at various points in the day. The time periods were rigid and equal in measure, ensuring that nobody would be forced to spend any more time with them than absolutely necessary. Lori herself was absent from the wheel since she argued that she would be the one in charge of housework and providing for the family as a whole. Lisa was also excluded, with the reasoning being that she was much too small to handle Leni or Luan on her own. Lola and Lana both protested; Lisa was hardly smaller than they were, so why did she get special treatment? Lori pointed out that both of them shared their shifts with each other, and that two people working together should be plenty to overcome a single teen baby. With that settled, everyone begrudgingly agreed to abide by the new system.

The day went on in this manner, with everyone pitching in to take care of the “little ones.” Lynn wrestled Luan into the bathtub while a diaperless Leni took a shit on the hallway floor, which the twins were forced to clean up. Lucy washed her face in the kitchen sink after Leni spewed her breakfast of carrot puree all over it, all while the others fought to restrain Luan from attempting to roll down the stairs. Lana had barely managed to stop Leni from guzzling a bottle of cleaning solution just as Lola burst into the room screaming as a chunk of Luan’s dookie sailed over her head. In all, it was a by the numbers day in the Loud House.

Meanwhile, Lori and Lisa were taking full advantage of their newfound free time. After sealing themselves inside Lisa’s room, safe from the projectile feces and ear-splitting crying, they had begun creating a plan that would not only get rid of Luan and Leni, but also put an end to the spread of this horrible disease. Trying to replicate what was done with Lincoln and Luna was out of the question; there couldn’t be any more sloppy murders and leaving body parts around for someone to gobble up.

“Obviously we need to do it away from the house,” Lori said. “Not only will it keep the others from finding out, but it also creates distance between the disease and our family.”

Lisa had already begun unfurling a map of Royal Woods. “I concur. We should bury the remains in a location where it is unlikely that anyone in the household would ever go to. Might I suggest the woods? Excluding Lana, none of our remaining siblings are too fond of the outdoors, and even she is unlikely to venture too deep by herself.”

“That’s fine. It’s a long drive, though. How are going to keep them in the van that long without them trying to make a break for it?”

“Will simply claiming that we’ll be taking them to the candy store not suffice?”

“That might fool Leni, but Luan isn’t as dumb as she looks. She’ll literally know something’s up the minute we drive out of town.”

Lisa adjusted her glasses and paused for a moment before responding. “I might have a plan. It is rather convoluted, and there are undoubtedly risks involved, but I believe it is the most effective way to safely transport them over such a long distance.”

That evening, a sibling meeting was called in Lori’s room. Lori slammed her shoe against the dresser, silencing the dissatisfied grumbling around her and officially beginning the session. She looked around at her audience. Five pairs of eyes looked back. If it wasn’t evident to Lori before that the number of children in this house had been halved, it was now. She felt her throat tighten, but she quickly coughed into her free hand to clear it. It gave her all the more reason to act now before their numbers grew even smaller.

“Okay everyone, I know we’re all upset about Mom and Dad not being here. But I’m here to tell you that there’s literally a reason for it. Can anyone guess what it is?” Lori paused and, after no response, resumed shortly. “It’s because of Leni and Luan. They’ve literally been driving them crazy. I mean, wouldn’t any of you want to leave if it meant getting away from them?”

Murmuring began amongst the sisters. It was slow at first, but it gradually grew more vocal and punctuated with nods of agreement. Lori fought the urge to cry out in joy; they were actually listening to her. Up to this point, any bad talk in regards to the “babies” would’ve been met with ridicule, but now it finally seemed like they were on her side.

“They won’t be gone forever though, right?” Lana asked, her lower lip quivering slightly. “Do you think they’ll come back soon?”

Lori nodded sympathetically. “I think so. But I’ll tell you this much: they literally won’t come back as long as those babies live under this roof. We have to get rid of them.”

“Get rid of them, how?” Lynn asked. She crossed her arms and looked at Lori dubiously.

Knowing that here was no way that these kids would ever be softened to the idea of familial murder, Lori had come prepared to wave off any suspicion. “We can get someone else to take care of them. I think we have a relative nearby who would agree to it.”

“Which relative?” Lucy asked. The shoe in Lori’s hand was slowly being crushed in her grip; she hadn’t actually thought her lie out that far ahead.

With Lori looking clueless, Lisa stepped up to the front of the room to field the question. “According to my genealogical research, one of our second cousins once removed lives rather close by Farmington Hills. Lori and I plan to drive there and make a case for them to adopt both Luan and Leni.” The research was complete bogus, but everyone bought it, just as Lisa anticipated.

Lynn snorted. “Good luck with that. That’s almost a twenty minute drive. I don’t think Vanzilla’s seats can take it if Luan tries tearing them up again like she always does whenever she’s cooped up in there for too long.”

“Yeah,” Lola chimed in. “Especially if she isn’t going to get anything out of it in the end. Remember when we told her that we were going to Dairy Land when we were really going to the dentist instead?”

Lucy shivered. “Don’t remind me. I still get nightmares about it.”

“Yeah, yeah, we know,” said Lori. “Lisa and I literally thought of all that, so that’s why we’re planning on restraining her somehow so that she doesn’t pitch a fit during the drive.”

“How are you gonna do that?” asked Lana.

Lori grinned. “That’s where you guys come in. It’ll be a bit tricky to lure Luan into the van, but if you all follow exactly what I say, everything will be back to normal before you know it.”

The next morning, Lana approached Luan and Leni’s room with a bottle of milk in her hand. Even though she had initially volunteered when Lori was looking for someone to put her plan into action, the sickening, potential danger within that room was causing her to drag her feet. She shuffled in place before raising a shaky fist to knock loudly on the door. “Rise and shine, kiddos!” Her voice burst out as a wobbly croak at first, but it quickly normalized as she continued her memorized script. “I’ve got your favorite breakfast ready for ya! Fresh, warm milk.” She shook the bottle of liquid in her hand, making it slosh loud enough to hear from behind the door. There was no response at first; Luan and Leni weren’t normally woken up for breakfast until a half hour from now. After a few seconds, however, a hollow, metallic creaking that made Lana’s ears twitch reverberated from inside. One of the beasts was stirring.

“Wawm miwkies?” Luan’s voice was groggy and muffled, but Lana could still detect the doubt surrounding it. A snort was heard, followed by a sputtering raspberry. “Momma not hewe no mowe! How you have wawm miwkies?”

Lana rubbed her hand up and down the bottle nervously as she struggled to remember her lines. “Uhh… It’s because… it’s Lori’s? Yeah, that’s right! Lori made it special for you!”

The door rattled on its hinges due to a crash from inside; one of the cribs must have toppled over. Clumsy footsteps rumbled towards the door and soon the handle was rattling violently, causing Lana to step back a few feet. With a resounding boom from the door slamming against the wall, Luan staggered on all fours out from the shadow of the doorframe. Her desiccated frame convulsed with every hungry breath and her darkened eyelids twitched as she focused on the object in Lana’s hand. Lana wanted to turn away, but she kept her line of sight on the wretch in front of her; experience with wild animals had taught her not to turn her back on a dangerous creature. Those gnarled, crusty fingernails and yellowed teeth weren’t claws or fangs, but she still wasn’t eager to find out how much damage they could inflict if given the chance.

“Lowi’s miwkies!” Luan’s bloodshot eyes bobbed along to the trembling bottle in Lana’s hand while her breath hissed through the gaps of her clenched teeth. “Give baby the miwkies, Wana!”

Lana forced herself to remain still and keep her eyes locked with Luan’s. If Lori’s plan were to succeed, she had to keep a level head; she wouldn’t give Luan the pleasure in smelling her fear. Lana stood completely motionless until she heard the crunch of Luan’s diaper as she took a step forward. Lana immediately swiveled around and lobbed the bottle down the hallway. It soared all the way towards the staircase before Lola, who had been waiting there patiently while all this went on, jumped and caught it. Luan produced a warbling roar from the back of her phlegmy throat before propelling herself past Lana, knocking her down in the process. Lola yelped and blindly tossed the bottle downstairs before ducking into one of the bedrooms to avoid the maniac charging at her. Luan skidded to a halt in front of the staircase as she watched the bottle fly past the bottom step only for it to be scooped out of the air in a catcher’s mitt.

Lynn held her prize triumphantly as Luan wailed from above. She sneered at Luan and remained rooted in her spot, even as the oversized infant began barreling down the stairs. Once Luan was more than halfway down, Lynn jogged towards the front door and had already crossed the threshold by the time Luan reached the bottom. The muscles in Luan’s body coiled and she pounced towards Lynn, hoping to sail past the door and land on top of her. She had just got off the ground when the door was slammed shut; she didn’t even have enough time to throw her hands in front of her before she realized she was about to crash. Her face struck the door with an echoing crack and she slumped to the floor in an unconscious heap.

On the other side of the door, Lucy dusted off her hands and sighed. It felt good to be a part of the plan, but she still felt like she didn’t do much. She opened the door and looked down at Luan. A frothy puddle of drool was beginning to form at the bottom of her mouth, and her diaper looked as if a fresh, mushy payload had filled it just after the impact. Plugging her nose with one hand, she used the other to signal to Lori that Luan was out like a light.

Lori came up the porch steps carrying a pair of nylon ropes that were normally used to securing cargo on top of Vanzilla. She then tied Luan’s wrists and ankles together before carrying her to the back seat of the van. Once inside, Luan was then fastened into place with a seatbelt for extra assurance. By the time that was all done, Lola and Lana had just led Leni by the hand all the way to the van. Unlike Luan, Leni exhibited very little violent tendencies, so she could easily be handled by the others. Lori’s expression twisted into a grimace as Leni looked up at her. Leni had the opposite reaction, unbridled excitement stretching her mouth into a yellow-toothed grin.

“Wheh we goin, Lowi?”

“We’re taking a trip, Leni. Your, uh… cousin wants to see you. It’s gonna be a long drive, so try to behave yourself in the van, okay?”

“Yay! Woad twip! Woad twip!”

“Settle down, Leni. Your sister’s asleep in the back already. Don’t wake her up.”

Lori lifted Leni under the armpits and began the process of fitting her into the hulking car seat that once belonged to Luna. Once the numerous straps were fastened and the mucus-coated safety bar clicked into place, Lori took her seat behind the wheel and started the engine. While she waited for Lisa to get in, she tilted the rearview mirror to glimpse at the drooling, smiling woman-child in the back. The metal and plastic car seat screeched under Leni’s weight as she burbled and bounced, seemingly oblivious to the world around her. A sigh rattled from Lori’s mouth and she averted her gaze; it just wasn’t fair. Leni was a victim like her, like the rest of the family. She didn’t willfully eat her own kin’s flesh to turn into the creature that she was; this curse was forced onto her. If there was a way to spare her somehow, Lori would’ve gladly taken that option. Instead, all she could do was hope that Leni wouldn’t have to suffer during her final moments.

Lisa had just finished loading the trunk before she clambered into the passenger’s seat. The supplies were minimal: a pair of shovels and a small bag containing a first aid kit and a sealed canister containing an unknown, hazardous chemical carefully handpicked by Lisa. Lori had also requested that Lisa pack her golf bag in case things went south; she felt much more confident in her ability to swing one of her prize-winning clubs over wielding a knife or any other weapon. Also stored in the van was a pair of hazmat suits that the two planned to put on once they were out of sight from the rest of the family. It wasn’t cheap for Lori to buy hers on such short notice, but Lisa insisted that it was a necessary precaution.

The engine continued to chug and gutter like it was on its last legs, and Lori waited for it to subside a little longer before pulling out of the driveway. Lola, Lana, Lucy, and Lynn all stood in a row on the sidewalk and waved goodbye to the passing van; Lori watched them slowly grow smaller in the mirror the further she drove down the street. Once they had pulled out of the neighborhood, Lori pulled over so that she and Lisa could put on the suits. The yellow, rubbery material clung to Lori’s skin and squeaked whenever it rubbed against anything. From behind her facemask, she glanced over at Lisa, who looked about as comfortable her suit as someone who had gone through this process about a million times before. “Are you sure that we couldn’t just wait till we’re literally at the woods to put these on?” A hollow buzz encased Lori’s voice due to her respirator.

“Take it from someone with experience in this field, dear sister: when handling live subjects, one must never take shortcuts when it comes to safety.”

The bright red sun was hardly visible above the tree tops by the time the van reached the woods. Neither Lori nor Lisa wanted to chance waking Luan up by making too much noise, so they had remained nearly silent throughout the whole trip. Lori in particular was much more focused on mentally preparing herself for the heinous act they were about to commit rather than thinking about meaningless small talk. In fact, she was so preoccupied on steeling her mind that the road in front of her became more of an afterthought. It didn’t occur to her right away that the van was drifting slightly towards the left until its tires went off the road and onto the grassy, uneven soil. The entire vehicle rattled on its rusty suspensions, startling Lori out of her concentration before she quickly righted it back onto the road. She mumbled a small curse at herself under her breath for being careless, but she wasn’t about to dwell on it. 

Meanwhile, in the backseat of the van, Luan’s eyes fluttered open shortly after the shaking subsided. Her face was swollen, her mind was murky, and when she tried to raise herself from her currently sideways position, she found herself unable to move her arms and legs. Panic immediately set in as she wriggled her arms to no avail, but her initial reaction to cry out was halted when she spotted Leni sitting right beside her. Aside from the buckles and straps of the car seat, she was otherwise unrestrained. Luan gritted her teeth; whoever was behind this was about to pay sorely for that oversight.

Luan managed to wriggle across the seat until the top of her head pressed against the base of Leni’s seat. “Weni,” she hissed. Leni turned with a look of joy upon seeing Luan was finally awake. She opened her mouth wide, but Luan quickly shushed her. “Don’t say a wowd. Just untie me.”

Leni’s smile disappeared and she took a moment to process Luan’s request. Fortunately for Luan, Leni’s unquestioning loyalty trumped her stupidity. With her fumbling hands, she was only able to slightly loosen the knot around Luan’s wrists, but Luan was still able to slip her hands out and free her ankles. Luan briefly flexed her sore wrists and fingers before hoisting herself over the next row of seats. Despite her best efforts to lower herself gently, the aging seats creaked and whined as Luan’s weight pressed down on their springs. Fortunately for her, the continual thundering of Vanzilla’s engine was more than enough to obscure most of the noise she was making, and she wasted no time in climbing over the next row.

Maybe it was just Lori’s natural instinct as a driver to periodically check the mirrors at that exact moment, even though there weren’t any other cars for miles. Maybe she just wanted to glance at her reflection, or perhaps it was just random movement of her eyes. For whatever reason it was, Lori’s eyes just happened to flit over to the rearview mirror at the precise moment that Luan was precariously balanced on top of the second row of seats. Lori screamed and instinctively threw her body to the left, her hands still clutching the steering wheel as she did so. Tires squealed against the asphalt as Vanzilla swerved hard left and shot off the road. Clouds of dirt and grassy clods of mud hurled past the windows and the entire vehicle rocked across the bumpy terrain, tossing Luan to the floor in the process. Still in the throes of fear, Lori could hardly regain herself before their momentum halted and everyone inside was thrown forward.

The van had crashed into a tree, creating an impact so deep it looked as if the front of the van was about to wrap around the entire trunk. Lori fought against the deployed airbags as she opened the door and threw herself out and onto the loamy earth. Her body ached and shivered as she was forced to put a hand on the side of the van to help herself stand up. Hobbling around the back to the passenger side, she exhaled in relief upon seeing that Lisa had already pulled herself out safely. Her glasses were askew and her messy hair stuck out in all directions, but she didn’t look seriously hurt.

“Are you okay?”

Lisa straightened her glasses and ran a hand across her head to smooth out her frazzled hair. “Do not fret. There is a chance that I may be afflicted with minor vertigo, but my condition is otherwise stable.”

As Lori and Lisa walked off towards a nearby tree to collect their bearings, the side door lurched open with a rusted clunk. The two sisters immediately backed away from the van and watched Luan fall from her seat and crash headfirst onto the ground. Her entire body quivered like jelly and as she raised herself up and constantly shifted her weight from side to side; it was as if the mere act of standing on two feet was a struggle for her. She craned her head forward to glare at Lori, revealing a thin, bloody scratch that curved under her hairline and stretched along the side of her head. Hot air blasted through the gaps in her teeth in rapid bursts before culminating into an enraged bellow. “Dis not how you tweat a baby, Lowi!”

Luan’s palms struck the grass with a crunch that could barely be heard over her nasally hyperventilation. Staring Lori down like a bull in the ring, she arched her back and charged towards her, clumps of grass and topsoil being kicked up in her wake. Lisa stumbled towards a nearby tree for cover while Lori bolted to the van. Still not having fully recovered from the crash, Lori tripped over herself but managed to stop herself from falling down by slamming against the van. Panicked gasps fogged her facemask as she hugged the side of the vehicle in her desperate dash towards the trunk. Once there, she wrenched it open and spotted her golf bag with most of its ejected contents scattered around the floor. With the earthy scrapes of Luan’s footsteps growing louder, she grabbed a club at pure random and held it out at arm’s length. It turned out to be her sand wedge; a club specialized in hitting the ball out of sand traps. While she had hoped to grab something with a weightier head, the wide, flat head of this club would at least allow for a faster swing. Hopefully it could cleave through Luan’s face as efficiently as it could sand.

Luan finally reached Lori and snarled at the club in her hands. Lori trembled as she took her hands off the van, but she held her club in a way that she assumed looked threatening, since Luan began slowly backing away from her. The ground appeared to shift at an angle in Lori’s blurry field of vision, but she forced herself to keep her eyes fixated on Luan. Luan growled and snarled in frustration, but she made no move to actually strike. The lingering effects of the crash made both of them reluctant to engage, and so both of them remained in place. Eventually Luan began crawling to the side, to which Lori responded by turning in place. This slow circling carried on for several minutes, with each of them occasionally making false swipes at the air to goad the other into action.

Luan was the one who finally broke the stalemate by steadily rising onto two legs while sticking her hand into the back of her crusty, saggy diaper. After swishing around in it for a few seconds, out popped a brown, slimy hand clutching a large glob of gristly shit. Lori gagged and averted her eyes from the scene, as well as the pungent projectile that was now hurtling right at her. The turd hit its mark directly, exploding onto Lori’s facemask and completely coating it with a viscous, brown film that rendered her completely blind. Before she could even bring a hand to her face, a blow to the gut forced all the breath out of her body in one high pitched gasp. She stumbled from the hit and fell onto her back, still completely blind to her surroundings and to the seething beast that had just crawled on top of her.

Luan’s teeth bit into Lori’s sleeve and she began shaking her head wildly in an attempt to tear through the rubbery suit. No matter how desperately she bit and scratched, the thick material was more than enough to withstand her. Lori’s head continued to spin as air gradually flowed back into her deflated lungs, all while silently thanking Lisa for insisting that she wear the suit. While Luan continued her futile assault, Lori regained just enough of her strength and aimed a knee directly into Luan’s padded crotch. Luan gasped, releasing the sleeve from her mouth, and Lori followed up by shoving her to the side. Flipping onto her front, Lori clawed her way over the gnarled grass to make some distance between her and Luan, all while trying her best to wipe the excrement off her mask. She managed to get most of it off, but her mask was still smeared with a faint, greasy residue that tinted her field of vision brown.

A low, guttural chuckle caused Lori to spin around to her right side. Luan had righted herself and was gently swaying from side to side, as if the wind was attempting to knock her back down. Her hand plunged into her diaper once more and she sneered at Lori. “It’s okay if youwe scawed pantswess of me, Lowi. Youwe gonna onwy need a diapee once I’m done wiff you.” Her hand continued to worm and grope inside of her diaper while she heaved and panted in ecstatic anticipation. She seemed so excited that, if it wasn’t already obvious what she was up to, Lori would’ve sworn that she was pleasuring herself.

Lori leapt on top of her discarded club just as Luan pulled out the second mass of gooey feces; she had barely enough time to stand back up before it was soaring towards her face again. With a forceful grunt, Lori swung the club in a wide arc in front of herself. It felt a little off to swing so high in the air, the motion felt more like baseball than golf, but she had somehow managed to strike her target. The projectile burst into a chocolaty shower that sprayed the surrounding grass and trees, coating everything within radius in foul, chunky fallout. Some of the goopy shrapnel also ricocheted back towards the one who threw it, spattering across Luan’s face and eyes. Luan screeched from the burning sensation in her eyes, falling to the ground and flailing her arms in her attempts to wipe her own filth off her face. Lori immediately recognized the opportunity and took long strides to close the gap between her and Luan. She straightened her back, kept her legs a fair distance apart, and raised her club high above her head while intently staring at Luan’s thrashing head. That earlier swing was pure luck, but now she’d get to show off a proper drive.

“Fore!” The club sliced through the air and struck the side of Luan’s head, silencing her screams and sending her splayed out onto the forest floor. The impact left a sizeable gash on Luan’s temple that was already seeping out fresh blood. Luan lay face down on the ground, her previously jerking limbs now spread out beside her. When a brief convulsion rocked her body against the dirt, Lori was swift to move in close and jump on top of her. With an anguished scream, she hefted her club and began repeatedly striking the back of Luan’s head. The first few swings carved a small indent at the base of her skull, but the awkward angle made it so that most of the swings were merely glancing off the sides of her head and plowing into the dirt. Lori didn’t care, she kept swinging until the flesh began to tear and she could feel the crunch of bone underneath her club. Aiming became even more difficult when the heat from her tears started to fog her mask, in addition to the spatters of blood that shot up towards her and stained her vision with red speckles. However, the whistle of the club, the wet mashing of flesh and bone, and the splash of blood against her rubber suit were all still able to serve as audible clues to her blind carnage.

“Lori, for God’s sake! That’s enough!” Lori’s onslaught was halted by the unexpected sound of Lisa’s voice. Unbridled anger continued to surge through her body and caused her limbs to tremble, but Lori forced a hand to wipe the blood off her mask and look upon the damage she caused. The back of Luan’s head resembled a pulpy, bloody plate of raw meat. Globs of blood and tiny pieces of bone coated the head of Lori’s club, some of them tangled with strands of wiry, brown hair. Lori threw it to the side in disgust and turned Luan’s head over to look at her face. Slack-jawed and smudged with dirt, blood, and her own waste, it looked as if she was hardly conscious for most of the beating. Lori looked into Luan’s upturned eyes, one of which tinted pink with blood, and clenched her eyelids shut to prevent more tears from spilling out. Try as she might, she still found it difficult to separate the monster from the sibling in these moments.

Lori felt a small hand touch her back and she turned to see Lisa looking at her morosely. “You completed your task admirably, albeit grisly. I doubt anyone would argue she deserved a more dignified end.” Lori wasn’t sure what to say in response to that. Another thing she’d probably never get used to is how this four year old can be so stoic with a dead body just mere inches away from her.

The stillness in the action made both girls gradually aware that there was a quiet sound of crying coming from the van. Leni, having been trapped inside her seat since the van crashed, had been crying for help the entire time Lori and Luan were fighting. Her puffy, tear-drenched eyes turned to Lori as she walked towards the van, and she redoubled the sound of her wails to grab her sister’s attention. “Lowi! Weni ascawed! Me want out!” Lori regarded her bawling sister coolly. Even though this was the part where she thought she’d be the most emotional, the ordeal with Luan left her feeling cold and drained. This day couldn’t end soon enough; she just wanted this girl as dead as the last one.

Sensing Lori’s frustration, Lisa scampered off to the back of the van and retrieved her bag. She then handed it to Lori, who flipped open one of the pockets to reveal a set of scalpels and other handheld tools. Lori grabbed the largest one she could find and went back to help Leni out of the van. The safety bar creaked and the nylon belts whistled as Lori freed Leni and carried her outside. Leni instinctively held onto Lori in a vice-like embrace, sobbing into her shoulder and blubbering a mix of baby talk and incomprehensible gibberish. Lori nearly spun around while struggling under the weight of someone that was nearly the same size as her before kneeling down and holding Leni close. With one hand placed on Leni’s back and rubbing it comfortingly, the other held onto the scalpel. Leni’s cries of sadness briefly spiked into a screech of pain as the blade pierced directly into her jugular and carved along her entire neck. Lori held the writhing girl firmly in her grasp, keeping the scalpel buried deep into her flesh as the sobs began to weaken, becoming quieter, breathier, and achingly desperate. Soon all that was left was a series of whimpers as Leni tightened her grip onto Lori, and then even those faded away into the cool, forest breeze.

Once Leni was completely still, Lori hoisted her body over her head so that she would be draped over her shoulders. She then went around to the back of the van and picked up the two shovels. Lisa holstered her bag of supplies and took hold of Luan’s corpse, dragging it behind her as she led the way into the thick of trees. Lori lagged behind her and the two began their search for an appropriate burial spot for their sisters. The faint orange of the dusk sky offered meager light as they ventured deeper into the woods; they needed to ensure this would be far away from even the most curious woodsman.

As the darkness began to settle in, they finally found a small clearing that was partially enclosed by a dense circle of trees. Disencumbering themselves of their heavy loads, the two got to work digging a hole. It was fortunate that Lisa had the foresight to bring a small, battery-powered lantern in her bag; it had gotten so dark at this point that they would’ve had trouble seeing the ground in front of them without it. The hole wasn’t very deep by the time both of them grew tired of digging, but Lisa assured Lori that it wouldn’t matter after the preparations were made. After unceremoniously dumping the bodies, Lisa unscrewed the top off a thermos-sized canister and poured a heaping of a white, powdery substance on top of the bodies. Lori forgot what Lisa said the compound’s chemical name was, but she did know that the powder was supposedly caustic enough to break down organic tissue over the course of several hours.

After the dirt was shoveled onto the bodies, they hastily began stomping it down to make the scene look as undisturbed as it was when they first arrived. It was hard to tell if it was convincing enough, even with the light of the lantern, but both of them relented that those two didn’t deserve the effort. Lori picked up the lantern and surveyed the scene one last time before shining it at Lisa, who was already zipping up her bag and preparing for the long walk back to the van.

“I guess this is it, then. Do you really think it’ll work?”

Lisa yawned and tightened the strap of her bag around her shoulder. “If this doesn’t stop the spread of the disease, nothing will.”

“Okay, but what are we going to tell everyone when we come back? How are we gonna explain what happened to Vanzilla?”

“Tell them the truth. Luan woke up and caused us to crash. Afterwards, we called a tow service that was generous enough to also drop Luan and Leni off at their new permanent home. I doubt anyone will be so concerned as to investigate much further than that.”

Lori grimaced and shot a brief glance at the grave. Permanent home, indeed. “Why is that, though? Why is everyone so clueless as to what’s going on? Like, Lisa, I can’t literally be the only one who’s weirded out by this, right? We’ve had literal family members vanish from existence and nobody bats an eye! I mean, you’d think that someone would’ve at least noticed one of the literal hundreds of pictures we have around the house, noticed the extra kids, and realized something was wrong.

“If I had an answer for all those questions, do you not think I would have already told you by now?”

“Humor me, then. What’s your best scientific guess?”

“I would say that the simplest explanation warrants mentioning. Grief is a powerful thing, maybe more powerful than we realize. Perhaps everyone knew deep down that something was amiss, that our dear infant sister was gone and that the only male child was suddenly acting in her place. Perhaps they simply chose not to acknowledge it, rather than come to terms with the ugly truth. When Luna, Luan, and Leni followed, the façade continued, even though everyone was suffering internally. The lie offered protection, but it was closing in on them, and nobody wanted to be the first to admit it.”

There was a pause. Nothing else but the breeze that gently rustled the leaves filled the space between the sisters. Hidden behind the respirator, Lori’s lips were curled into an indignant scowl. Grief? Those “babies” were the ones giving her grief! “Coming from a genius like you, that sounds like literal bullshit, Lisa. I know you have a better answer than that, and we aren’t leaving this spot until you tell me.”

Lisa heaved a long, exaggerated groan while throwing her arms up in the air for effect. “Curse me for selecting such a nosy, persistent subject! I should have used Luna instead back when I had the chance. At least she would’ve followed directions without asking so many brain-dead questions!”

Lori’s eyelids stretched back as far they could go. She didn’t expect Lisa to give in so quickly. “S-Subject?”

“Yes, Lori, a subject. I myself prefer the term ‘guinea pig,’ but the scientific community frowns upon such terminology when applied to fellow humans. In any case, the experiment has concluded, so I might as well humor you and state the facts.”

“Experiment? Wha… What the fuck are you talking about!?”

“Please settle down, profanity doesn’t suit you. Remember the day of Aunt Ruth’s funeral when I told you that you play an entirely separate role in my research? In a way, that was a half-truth. I was making the impression that I was studying our infected siblings, but the true focus was entirely on you, Lori. You were the basis of my experiment, which was to observe how the human psyche reacts when placed under extreme duress, paranoia, and isolation. I initially hypothesized that your sanity would crumble after the first month of dealing with Lincoln, but for a teenage girl that only cares about phones and boys, your mind endured even more than I thought possible.” 

Lori clutched her stomach while Lisa spoke. She always knew that Lisa was hiding more than she was letting on, but to actually hear all this was sickening. “So… So you were really the cause of all this? You turned Lincoln and the others into those… things?”

Lisa shook her head. “If I had actually created a virus with the degenerative properties as the one that infected our siblings, why would I have wasted my time with experimenting on you? No, I found him in Lily’s crib before you had even risen from your slumber. The sight was horrifying, but simultaneously inspiring. What if I could somehow convince the others that Lincoln was the family’s baby all along and that Lily never existed? It was still early morning at this point, so I had plenty of time to put a plan into action. It was all very simple, really. I whipped up a benign neurotoxin that targets the temporal lobe, weakening the connection to long-term memories. Introducing that into the morning’s coffee was all it took for everyone to forget Lily’s existence. Daily dosages via mealtimes also helped keep everyone in perpetual ignorance, even in the face of concrete evidence such as photographs.” 

“Daily dosages? How were you able to-”

“I’ve told you before that I’ve assisted Father with his cooking every day, correct?”

“But what about everyone else? At Thanksgiving, the funeral, even Bobby… you never poisoned any of them.”

“No need. In a family as large as ours, can you really expect anyone outside our immediate household to keep track of what the baby looks like? Also, I find your usage of ‘poisoned’ to be incredibly disingenuous. The compound has never caused any harm to anyone.”

“What do you mean never caused any harm? People have literally died, Lisa! Our siblings, your own family, are dead because of you!”

“Ah, but those deaths were not because of me. I don’t have the stomach for siblicide, you see. No, their deaths were by your hand, my wondrous test subject. The feeling of isolation from your family and from reality itself forced you to commit the unthinkable. But never you worry, with all the research I’ve collected, our names will be immortalized in the scientific community. Your brain will no doubt be a staple in future psychology texts and we will be living on easy street for the rest of our lives. I hope you agree that this entire, grisly ordeal was a small price to pay for the name of scien-”

Lisa’s sentence was cut off by an abrupt gag as the tip of Lori’s foot dug into her gut. The force of the kick sent her tumbling backwards until she crashed into a tree. As she lay there coughing for fresh air, she was powerless to stop Lori’s fingers from constricting her throat.

“You lying, sneaky, gas lighting little worm! I’m literally going to-”

“Do what? Kill me? Am I to become the latest addition to your body count?”

Lori cringed, but her grip remained firm. “Don’t try to guilt me. What choice do I even have? You’re a threat to the whole family.”

Lisa snorted. “I already have all the data I need. What possible reason would I have to further this experiment?”

“Maybe not this one, but what about the next? How do I know you won’t use one of us as your next ‘guinea pig?’”

Hot globules of sweat started trickling down Lisa’s forehead. “Look, Lori, we’ve been in this situation before. You’ll just have to put your trust in me once more. The disease is gone for good, the family is safe, and I can promise you a bright future of notoriety and potential grant money. Release me, please.”

It was never easy to look past Lisa’s stoic demeanor and figure out her true intentions, but Lori was determined to try. The fog inside her mask caused by the sweat on her brow was a clear sign of her fear, but Lori also noticed how tight her lips were drawn out and how her eyes frequently darted to the sides, as if searching for a way to escape. The rat had been caught, and Lori had an idea of how she wanted to deal with it. With her free hand, she ripped off Lisa’s facemask and respirator before wiping off some of the gunk off her own mask. The medley of dried blood and shit stained her gloved fingers with brownish-black crust. Lisa’s struggles against Lori’s hold only intensified once she realized what her older sister was up to.

“For sanity’s sake, Lori, have a heart!” The toddler kicked against the tree and shook her head from side to side, all while her eyes remained glued to Lori’s soiled hand. “You can kill me if you so desire, but don’t subject me to that fate before you do! I beg you!” 

Lori’s fingers idly wriggled as she continued to watch Lisa’s failed efforts to break free. Not wanting to let this go on any longer, she finally forced her fingers into Lisa’s mouth. Spreading them out as far as they could to expand the opening, she began by rubbing her slimy digits along the sides and roof of the mouth. Her index finger wedged itself between Lisa’s lips and her top row of teeth while her thumb forced down her tongue so that she could coat every single taste bud with filth.

Lisa’s strangled, hysteric screams were distorted as they reverberated out of her gaping jaws. Her tiny hands clenched onto Lori’s in a desperate attempt to pull it out of her mouth, but it refused to budge. Lori solemnly continued her work, all while trying to avoid looking at the pure horror reflected within Lisa’s eyes. It didn’t take much longer before Lisa’s thrashing limbs finally fell limp and her screams gave way to silence. The small girl’s pupils shrunk while her jaw fell limp in Lori’s grip. Lori took her now trembling hand out of Lisa’s mouth and reached for the bag while her sister thrashed against the tree. Taking out another scalpel, she pressed the tip of the blade against Lisa’s throat just as the young girl seemed to be regaining awareness.

“Haaaaah, hi Lowi!” Lisa’s lips curled into a toothy grin and she raised a flaccid arm in what looked like an attempt to reach for Lori’s face. Her glasses magnified her already dilated pupils to the point where it looked to Lori like she was peering into two black holes. Frothy drool seeped from the edges of her mouth, which she wrapped around one of the fingers still clenched around her throat. Burbling absent-mindedly to herself, she sucked and gnawed on the gloved digit all while oblivious to the shivering knife mere inches away from her neck. It was startling and a little bittersweet to see her fall to the same fate as the others so quickly; a part of Lori thought that maybe Lisa’s brain would’ve been sound enough to resist most of the effects, at least for a while. It was probably best for Lori to finish this quickly; not even Lisa deserved to remain like this for too long.

With little hesitation, Lori stuck the blade into Lisa’s throat and sliced it from vein to vein. Lisa sputtered and choked as a spray of blood shot out and drenched Lori’s facemask. The hand around her neck clenched harder, forcing more blood to gush out and spill onto the dirt below. Wheezing pitifully, it only took a few seconds for Lisa’s body to fall completely limp against the tree behind her. Lori dropped the scalpel and wiped the blood away from her eyes. Looking upon her work immediately caused her to drop the blood-drenched, wide-eyed toddler onto the puddle of her own blood. Her stomach twisted into knots as she looked into the permanent expression of confusion and fear plastered on her sister’s face, so she quickly turned away in search of her shovel.

Lori didn’t have to spend too much time digging; she only shoveled away just enough dirt to nestle Lisa in between Leni and Luan’s corpses. She dumped the rest of Lisa’s powder onto the body for good measure before covering the spot with dirt as if nothing had happened. After giving the grave one final, lingering look, she picked up the shovels, Lisa’s bag, and the lantern before beginning her slogging trek out of the woods. Thankfully, Lisa’s GPS was stowed away in the bag, so Lori was able to use it to find her way back; it was a shame that she wouldn’t be able to thank her for that.

Once she finally reached the van, she peeled off her bulky hazmat suit and tossed it in the trunk along with everything else. She immediately regretted the fact that she didn’t think to bring a jacket along once the nighttime chill made contact with her clammy, sweaty flesh. Not even Vanzilla’s interior could offer much shield against the cold once she got inside. At least she could turn the heater on once she started the car, but the ignition only grinded and sputtered in protest when she turned the key. The crash had done a number on the already ailing engine; it would take some sort of mechanic wizard to get it to start. Grumbling to herself, she took out her phone to call a tow service, who told her that they’d arrive in about ten minutes.

Save for the outside ambience of chirping birds and insects, the minutes passed by in near silence. Lori tried getting comfortable on the springy, crusty seats as her racing mind settled down and tried making sense of what the future had in store now. The others would no doubt have a bunch of questions for her when she got home. She figured she’d follow Lisa’s advice for explaining the crash, but what about Lisa herself? Perhaps she could fabricate an excuse that Lisa went to live with Luan and Leni as a sort of guardian to make sure they’re okay in their new home. What she was really banking on was the possibility that Lisa would end up forgotten just like the others. That drug in all their systems could make them forget anything, but without Lisa constantly doping them up, how long would the effects last? Would those memories be permanently severed, or would a day come about where everyone becomes all at once aware that their family is inexplicably short six members?

The high-pitched chimes of the tow truck knocked Lori out of her respite. Lori sighed and watched the truck through the rearview mirror, which soon became engulfed in a brilliant red shine as the truck’s taillights drew closer. With any luck, the driver would have her back home before anyone else woke up, which would give her some time to rest without dealing with any questions. And with the house now and forever free of babies, she could bet that her rest would be long, undisturbed, and well deserved.


End file.
